Rokas Žilinskas (20 July 1972 – 6 June 2017) was a Lithuanian journalist and politician. He was elected to the
Seimas
The Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublikos Seimas), or simply the Seimas (), is the unicameral parliament of Lithuania. The Seimas constitutes the legislative branch of government in Lithuania, enacting laws and amendmen ...
in 2008 and was a member of the Lithuanian Parliament until his death. He was the first openly gay member of the parliament.
Biography
Rokas Žilinskas was born in a swimming coach and kindergarten teacher's family. While at school Rokas became interested in
geography
Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...
, later
politology
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
and
politics
Politics (from , ) is the set of activities that are associated with making decisions in groups, or other forms of power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of resources or status. The branch of social science that studies ...
. He studied journalism at the
University of Vilnius
Vilnius University ( lt, Vilniaus universitetas) is a public research university, oldest in the Baltic states and in Northern Europe outside the United Kingdom (or 6th overall following foundations of Oxford, Cambridge, St. Andrews, Glasgow and ...
. Before being elected to the Lithuanian Parliament Rokas Žilinskas was a famous Lithuanian journalist, editor and TV News anchor having worked at
LRT news service from 1993 to 1998 and
LNK television from 1998 to 2008.
In 2009, one year after the Parliament elections, Žilinskas openly declared that he was
gay
''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'.
While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...
, hence becoming the first elected LGBT politician in Lithuania. He, however, expressed disapproval for the equal rights for gays, such as
gay marriages and
gay adoption
Same-sex adoption is the adoption of children by same-sex couples. It may take the form of a joint adoption by the couple, or of the adoption by one partner of the other's biological child ( stepchild adoption).
Joint adoption by same-sex co ...
, but unexpectedly decided to participate in the first homosexual parade in
Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...
, despite being opposed to it for a long time.
Žilinskas damaged his public image after he cursed at policemen when he was under the influence of alcohol. In 2011, Žilinskas was expelled from the
Christian Party, after he was noticed allegedly being drunk in Seimas.
In 2012, he became a member of the conservative
Homeland Union
The Homeland Union – Lithuanian Christian Democrats ( lt, Tėvynės sąjunga Lietuvos krikščionys demokratai, TS–LKD), also known colloquially simply as the Conservatives, is a centre-right political party in Lithuania. It has 18,000 mem ...
and was re-elected to the Seimas that year as well as in 2016.
Addiction challenges
Active performance and openness made MP Rokas Žilinskas a special example on Lithuania's political arena. He openly talked about his addiction problems, his path to recovery, and voluntarily helped other people that had similar problems and experiences.
He worked to balance the harm of addictions and the potential of addiction-incurring businesses to level it by contributing to education, addiction prevention, treatment and rehabilitation.
Personally led his own working groups and contributed to the groups under Offices of the President and the Government of Lithuania to develop and introduce socially responsible model in relations between addiction-incurring industries and businesses and the society.
Honors and awards
* Charity trust fund "Mūsų krantai" Golden Cross Order 3rd Class “For the Sake of Society”;
* News website DELFI’ “Titan” “For the Most Daring Article of the Year”;
* By the Decree of the President of the Republic of Lithuania – Medal of Honor “For Personal Contribution to Lithuania’s Chairmanship of European Council in 2013”.
Death
Žilinskas was hospitalized in May 2017. On 6 June 2017, Žilinskas died of pneumonia from complications of
HIV
The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of ''Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immune ...
at
Vilnius University
Vilnius University ( lt, Vilniaus universitetas) is a public research university, oldest in the Baltic states and in Northern Europe outside the United Kingdom (or 6th overall following foundations of Oxford, Cambridge, St. Andrews, Glasgow and ...
's Santaros Clinic at age 44. He was buried in
Antakalnis Cemetery in Vilnius.
In popular culture
* Žilinskas was presented in a British documentary film ''
Starsuckers'' where he was interviewed.
* Žilinskas was a subject of parody by a Lithuanian humorist
Justinas Jankevičius who parodied Žilinskas's TV-announcer-like way of speaking.
*Žilinskas was a subject of parody by famous Lithuanian actress Ineta Stasiulytė in the show "Pakartok". https://play.tv3.lt/pakartok-rokas-zilinskas-10170797
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zilinskas, Rokas
1972 births
2017 deaths
21st-century Lithuanian politicians
Gay politicians
Gay journalists
Homeland Union politicians
Journalists from Vilnius
Members of the Seimas
Lithuanian gay men
Lithuanian LGBT journalists
Lithuanian LGBT politicians
LGBT legislators
Burials at Antakalnis Cemetery
Deaths from pneumonia in Lithuania